Wellington Shields upgraded shares of El Paso Electric (NYSE: EE) to a buy rating in a report released on Wednesday. Wellington Shields currently has $35.75 target price on the stock.
“Yesterday morning, management presented the El Paso Electric story to investors at the Grand Hyatt in New York City, which included 4Q & 2012 results. Making the presentation were CEO Tom Shockley, CFO David Carpenter, and VP/Treasurer Steve Busser. Joining them was Dr. Robert W. Gilmer of the University of Houston who specializes in the economies of Texas border cities, including El Paso.,” the firm’s analyst commented.
Shares of El Paso Electric traded up 0.24% during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $33.16. El Paso Electric has a one year low of $29.17 and a one year high of $35.01. The stock’s 50-day moving average is currently $33.19. The company has a market cap of $1.330 billion and a P/E ratio of 14.55.
The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which is scheduled for Friday, March 29th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.02%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 12th.
Separately, analysts at Jefferies Group cut their EPS estimates on shares of El Paso Electric in a research note on Thursday. They now have a hold rating and a $32.00 price target on the stock.
One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a buy rating, and five have assigned a hold rating to the company. El Paso Electric presently has a consensus rating of hold and a consensus price target of $34.50.
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